The Ice Coated Flame
by sktrgrl13
Summary: AU-ish - After the battle against Satan last Summer, Rin Okumura finally thinks that he's able to relax, but with a prophecy looming over True Cross Academy Cram School's head about a third son of Satan all hell is bound to break loose... especially if that third son isn't from Assaiah


The gothic dark green halls of the True Cross Academy Cram School were deserted. It was Fall Break so all the students within the Cram School had gone home to spend the holidays with their families. Although Rin Okumura had no home to return to for the holidays, he was the happiest fifteen year old in the world. Even though the past few months have been hell for him, he couldn't help but look to the bright side. Bon, Shima, Izumi, Shiemi, Konekomaru, and most of the exorcists have accepted who he was now and didn't judge him because his father was their worst enemy; hell, his father was his own worst enemy and he was going to stay that way for the rest of time. Rin was never going to let his _father_ attack his home or his family ever again. He was lucky that he still had his twin brother Yukio, whom he almost lost at the end of the summer. That had to be the scariest moment of Rin's life and he never wanted to experience anything like that, ever again. The midnight black-haired half-demon couldn't help but scowl as he wandered to the kitchen. Yes, he was mostly happy, but the newly discovered prophecy grated on his nerves. Not only could he not make head or tail of it, but it also said that Satan was going to seek revenge on Assaiah, and might very well succeed if the _third_ son of Satan didn't help the exorcists in that battle. He sighed to himself as he pulled out the ingredients to make some ramen when Yukio, the usually calm Okumura, came barrelling into the room almost knocking Rin into the counter. A few ingredients rolled off the counter and onto the white tiled floor when Yukio grasped Rin's shoulders and started shaking him frantically; his words slurred trying to get everything out as fast as he could.

"Rin! I found him! I found him! He isn't in this world, he's in another world! We have to find him before HE does!" Yukio shouted.

"Whoa," Rin removed his younger brother's arms calmly, "You have to slow down, I can't keep up with you."

Yukio visibly calmed down and ran his hands through his chestnut brown hair. He adjusted his glasses and his exorcist coat before picking up the fallen ingredients and handing them to his older brother. He took deep breaths to calm his frantic heart and breathing before looking into Rin's sapphire blue eyes.

"I found the third son of Satan, Rin; the one from prophecy."

Rin paled and his hands started to shake,

"There was actually another one like us all this time?"

"I don't know much about him Rin, all I know is that he's from a completely other world from our own. He probably doesn't even know Assaiah or Gehenna exists."

Rin slumped against the table and ran his hands through his dark hair. He sighed in frustration and grasped his kurikara anxiously. He could feel it vibrating in his sheath, as if urging him to connect with this mysterious boy, who was supposedly his half-brother.

"When do we leave?" He asked quietly.

"What?" Yukio watched him cautiously.

"You heard me," Rin said, "When do we get him and bring him here?"

"That's where the problem lies," Yukio sighed, "Sources tell me he can be just as stubborn as you, so chances are he isn't going anywhere. I would feel more at ease if we travelled together so your tempers don't clash."

"But we need him; it's the only way to defeat Satan." Rin hissed their father's name.

"I know that Rin, but I can't leave the academy right now and I don't want you to go there alone and cause a scene."

"C'mon Yukio!" Rin whined, "You can trust me; I won't screw things up, I swear!"

Yukio regarded his brother and quickly tried to divert his gaze. Rin had the biggest puppy eyes in the world and it was next to impossible for Yukio to ignore them. Sadly, he knew that his efforts were in vain. Even if Yukio beat Rin's puppy eyes and convinced him to stay, Rin would probably sneak out anyway and make things even worse. Yukio sighed in defeat and hesitantly reached into one of his many pockets and pulled out a file. He opened the file and pulled out a picture and placed it on the counter next to the spices. He slid the photo to Rin so he could get a better look at it.

"This is the person you are looking for. He's either 16 or 17 years old and very well known around his town, so it shouldn't be hard to locate him."

Rin examined the picture that lay in front of him and he felt his mouth drop open,

"Y-Yukio, he looks just like me."

Yukio nodded and glanced over at the picture himself,

"I noticed that too, all he needs is your pointed ears and teeth and your sapphire blue eyes and he could be your identical twin."

"I-I'm okay with having only one twin thanks."

The younger Okumura laughed and handed one of the portal keys over to his older brother,

"This should take you right to him; I'll join you when I can."

Rin reached out to grab the key, but Yukio held it just out of his reach. Rin raised an eyebrow in confusion, but let his arm drop.

"What is it?"

"It's just…" Yukio hesitated, "I don't want you to use kurikara while you're there."

"Why the hell not?!" Rin demanded, "What if I need to protect myself?!"

"Please Rin? Just fight like you used to when you were hiding your powers from the others. I just don't know how he'll react to the kurikara."

For a moment, Rin was still confused, but then he realized what Yukio was trying to get at. He was worried that unleashing kurikara would somehow unleash the mysterious boy's own demon powers. 'Man' he thought, 'Yukio sure likes to think ahead doesn't he?'

"Fine, if it will prevent you from getting an ulcer I'll keep the kurikara sheathed."

Yukio tossed the key to his older brother with a relieved smile on his face,

"Thank you."

Rin turned to leave so that he could get the boy and convince him to come to the academy when his stomach grumbled loudly. He sighed sadly and glanced at the ramen he was in the midst of preparing.

"You don't need to leave right away, you could eat first." Yukio smiled knowingly.

"No," Rin quickly cleaned up the counter, "It's better to do it now; the equinox is in a couple weeks and we don't know if time flows differently in this other world."

Yukio poked Rin's pale cheek playfully and teased,

"Aw, when did you get so responsible?"

Rin rolled his eyes and laughed before pulling his younger brother into a tight hug,

"It's because you're corrupting me four-eyes. I'll see you when I get back, hopefully with this guy fully intact."

"Rin…"

"I was kidding!" He stepped away and grabbed the picture off the counter, "You know I was kidding."

Rin shoved the picture of the boy into his pocket and shouldered kurikara more securely. He started towards the doorway; he was about to activate the portal when he realized that he forgot something fairly important.

"Hey Yukio, when I'm looking around for him, what do I call him?"

The younger Okumura adjusted his glasses and smiled slightly at his brother,

"His name is Gray, Gray Fullbuster."

BEFTBEFTBEFTBEFT

Gray couldn't shake off the bad feeling he had since he had woken up that morning. Part of the reason was because for the first time since his mission at Galuna Island, Gray dreamt about Deliora. It was never a good thing when he dreamt about him and the death of his parents, but this time it was different; this time, Deliora was in Magnolia Town and he brutally murdered all his friends and guild mates before his eyes. To make things worse he felt as if an ominous presence was following him everywhere he went, but every time he turned around, no one was there. He felt like he was losing it; like his birth mother had before she died. Gray tried to force that thought out of his mind as the sun beat down on his shoulders causing his normally cold skin to tingle uncomfortably. Gray was never a fan of the heat, not only because of Natsu, his rival and best friend, but also because it made him feel so exhausted. Gray kept his head down as he walked down the crowded streets of Magnolia Town so he could get to the nice, air conditioned guild as fast as possible.

"GRAY!" A voice shouted.

Gray sighed and turned around, knowing exactly who was calling him. Even though he was annoyed, he couldn't stop the smile from spreading across his face. He watched as his pink haired friend ran down the crowded street in order to catch up to him. In a matter of moments, Natsu Dragneel was standing before him with his signature goofy smile on his face. Gray noticed that Happy wasn't with him this time; it was weird seeing one without the other seeing as they were almost always joined at the hip.

"Man you walk fast," Natsu commented, "I thought I was never going to catch up with you."

"Or maybe you're just getting slow flamehead," Gray laughed, "Did you ever think of that?"

Natsu punched Gray across the shoulder playfully,

"You wish ice for brains; after all, it's the only way you could ever beat me in a fight."

"Tch, keep dreaming Natsu; you'll never beat me."

Natsu opened his mouth to retort, but Gray held his hand up to signal him to stop. The streets seemed eerily silent all of a sudden and it unnerved him immensely. The last time he felt like this was with anything related to Deliora's attack on his hometown all those years ago. It also reminded him of his mother's final words to him. The words that he has spent most of his life trying to forget, the words that tainted every single happy memory he had with his mother. Without a word Gray grabbed the dragon slayer's forearm and began to run towards the guild. They were almost at the front doors of their safe haven when Gray walked head first into someone.

"Sorry," He mumbled apologetically.

Gray went to move around the stranger when something latched onto his left wrist. Gray turned on his heel, prepared to force the guy to let go of him when he stopped dead. The stranger standing in front of him and subsequently holding onto his wrist looked exactly like him. The boy was wearing dark baggy jeans and a white button up shirt with a red tie hanging loosely from his neck. The sleeves were bunched up to his elbows revealing his pale forearms and he had a sheathed sword hanging from his shoulder. The boy was about his height and had the exact same complexion that Gray recognized in himself. The stranger's midnight black hair shone in the midmorning sun and hung in his sapphire blue eyes almost concealing them. The stranger's ears were also slightly pointed, so were his teeth, but he couldn't really judge, he resembled Natsu in those respects; but otherwise, he could be Gray's long lost twin.

_They'll come for you one day Gray…_

"Are you Gray Fullbuster?" The strange boy asked.

Gray dropped Natsu's arm and yanked his arm out of the stranger's grip,

"What's it to you?"

The boy sighed and ran his hand through his dark hair; once again Gray was reminded of himself,

"When I say Assaiah and Gehenna, does it mean anything to you?"

Gray felt the colour leave his face and the back of his neck felt extremely hot as the memory of his mother's words flew across his mind.

_You'll be needed to save Assaiah from its enemy Gehenna one day; you have to save it from your father. _

"Natsu," Gray's voice sounded thick, "Go into the guild, I'll be right behind you."

Natsu glanced between his friend and the stranger awestruck by their physical similarities. The stranger also smelt funny to Natsu, he smelt… dangerous… and he couldn't figure out why. The pinkette shook his head at the ice mage defiantly,

"No way, I'm not leaving you out here with him."

"Do as I say." Gray growled, not taking his eyes off the stranger, "Have faith in me."

"Gray…"

"Natsu please, let me deal with this."

Natsu glanced at his rival and best friend again before turning towards the guild hall reluctantly,

"Call if you need anything. You know we'll all stand behind you."

"I know." Gray smiled reassuringly, "I'll meet you inside."

Natsu nodded and headed towards the guild hall. Instead of going inside, however, he decided to take a detour and hide in one of the surrounding bushes. He felt his hands begin to tingle as his fire magic threatened to consume his hands. He supressed the urge to summon the magic and focused intently on Gray. 'Don't worry Gray,' he thought, 'I'm here for you'.

"So it's time," Gray's voice carried over to Natsu, "Just tell me, whose side are you on?"

BEFTBEFTBEFTBEFT

Rin couldn't believe that he had found Gray Fullbuster as quickly as he had. He had literally just learned that Gray was a mage of Fairy Tail and the best place to search for him was the Fairy Tail Guild Hall. Even better, Gray seemed to know more about Assaiah and Gehenna than what Yukio had originally thought, which made Rin's task a little bit easier. Rin watched as Gray sent his pink haired friend away; in a way this 'Natsu' reminded him a bit of Shima… maybe it was the pink hair? He waited patiently for Natsu to disappear so that they could talk more privately. He opened his mouth to speak when Gray glared at him so coldly that he froze in his tracks.

"So, it's time," Gray spat, "Just tell me, whose side are you on?"

"I'm trying to save Assaiah," Rin answered, "Along with my brother and all our friends."

Surprisingly, Gray snorted in disbelief and if it was possible, his glare became even colder.

"Then why do you need my help?"

Rin bit his lip before meeting Gray's cold gaze head on. Be damned that he would let this stubborn ass beat him at a glaring contest.

"Do you know who you are Gray?" He asked calmly, "Do you know your parentage?"

"My parents were killed in a demon attack." He muttered darkly, "Deliora, demon of Gehenna, murdered everyone in my home town, including my parents. He didn't kill me because he wasn't under orders to; imagine the hell he would be in if he killed the devil's spawn."

Rin regarded Gray sadly. He was very familiar with the pain that Gray felt, having experienced it himself just earlier that spring when his surrogate father was murdered by Satan. The dark memories of that day started to flood into his mind, but he shook it off; this was about Gray and convincing him to come to Assaiah.

"How much do you know about this?" Rin asked.

"Before she died, my mother told me everything. She told me that one day someone or something will come for me so I could save a world much like this one from being swallowed up by another world called Gehenna. She said I would change everything that was impossible, into something that was possible. She told me I was the son of Satan." Gray recited spitefully.

"So you know pretty much everything."

"Yeah, everything but who _you_ are."

Rin shoved his hands in his pockets and sighed. Now came the part that he wasn't looking forward to; he had to convince Gray that he was also a son of Satan, WITHOUT using his blue flames and that he has not been lying to him the entire time… this should be fun… where was Yukio when you needed him.

"I'm Rin Okumura and I was born and raised in Assaiah along with my younger twin brother Yukio. We both attend True Cross Academy, which doubles as an Exorcist Cram School; us along with other students and exorcists fight and exorcise demons that cross over from Gehenna and into Assaiah. Last summer a battle between Satan and the Exorcists broke out that nearly claimed the lives of my friends, my teachers, my fellow exorcists, my brother, myself and my world. At the end of the battle a prophecy was revealed to the exorcists that entailed the existence of another son of Satan and the key to defeating Satan for good." Rin explained hastily, "Gray, you're the third son of Satan and the key to saving Assaiah and possibly your world's survival."

"Wait hold on," Gray stopped him, "If I'm the third son of Satan, who are the other two?"

"How old are you Gray?"

"Excuse me? I don't see how that's relevant to the situation." Gray crossed his arms over his now bare chest. 'Where'd his shirt go?'

"Just answer the damn question." Rin said impatiently.

"17 as of this December, what's it to you?"

"Well, that makes you the first son of Satan then."

"How?" He demanded.

"Because Yukio and I are only turning 16 this December." He said absently.

"You're a son of Satan too?" Gray's mouth dropped open slightly, "Bullshit!"

The ground suddenly began to rumble under their feet. The civilians scrambled trying to avoid the crumbling walls as the seismic disturbance shook loose debris. A demonic aura flowed throughout the town and Gray visibly paled.

"No…" He whispered as he brought his hands together, "It's impossible…"

Rin shrugged his sheathed sword off his shoulder and held it in his hand. The quakes were getting stronger and the dark aura was thick enough to suffocate anyone within 100 mile radius. Rin subconsciously stepped back so he was standing beside his newfound half-brother.

"What is it?" Rin hissed, "What's wrong?"

"I-It's Deliora, but he's dead." Gray swallowed the lump in his throat, "Ur, my old teacher, drained his power over a span of many years and Natsu defeated him for good on Galuna Island last spring; I saw it happen."

"Shit."

"Let me guess," Gray laughed darkly, "Good old 'dad' knows where I am and wants to kill me in the most excruciating way possible."

"That or he wants to take you to Gehenna so he can finally have a body of his own since both Yukio and I adamantly refused." Rin smiled nervously.

"Well, isn't that great."

"Oh it's a great deal of fun."

The ground continued to shift continuously under the two half-demons' feet. Gray closed his eyes and tried to pinpoint Deliora's location in regards to the location of the town and how long it would take to evacuate the villagers and his guild. He refused to let them fight this one, even if they were to beg him, he would not give in. He would not let Satan kill his family again, not ever.

"Gray," Rin whispered, "He's getting closer."

"I know that." Gray spat, "Would we be able to evacuate the villagers on time?"

"I have a portal key, but I don't know if it will work in your world." Rin grasped his kurikara firmly, "I know I can open a door from here to True Cross Academy, but I don't think the exorcists would appreciate it if I brought a village from another world there."

Gray turned to the half-demon and looked at him pleadingly,

"Please Rin, I know it's a lot to ask, but I can't let any more people die by Deliora's hand. I will take full blame if you get in trouble with your people. I need to make sure my family is safe, please can you do this for me?"

Rin didn't have to think about it very long. Although he has not known Gray for very long, he could definitely see that they were the same person with the same ideals. All he wanted was to keep his family safe; something that Rin strived for back in Assaiah when his own family was threatened.

"Okay, but Deliora will probably be here any time now so we're going to have to hurry." He agreed, "Will the other members of Fairy Tail be able to help with the evacuations?"

Gray nodded and turned towards the guild hall. He cupped his hands around his mouth so his voice could be amplified over the sound of the screaming townspeople,

"Oi Natsu! I know you're out here!"

To Rin's surprise, the pinkette stepped out from behind a nearby bush, his hands engulfed with intense red flames. The familiar warmth coming from the red flames teased the blue flames he possessed. His blue flames wanted to make themselves known, but the kurikara prevented that from happening, much to their dismay. The pinkette, or Natsu, sprinted to the ice mage and watched Rin warily from the corner of his eye. Natsu kept most of his focus on Gray and what he had just overheard between the two; he still couldn't believe it.

"Is it true?" Natsu whispered.

Gray nodded, his deep blue eyes shining with regret and sadness,

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you guys, but I didn't believe it until Rin confirmed it."

Natsu nodded in understanding and tensed when the familiar demonic aura of Deliora hit him. A chill ran across his hot skin,

"Need me to get the rest of the guild?"

"That would be great," Gray's eyes shifted anxiously, "We need to do this now."

Natsu bolted to the guild to get the other wizards while Rin and Gray ran in other direction and began to evacuate civilians. Rin opened up a door to the True Cross Academy in one of the empty allies close by. In no time, Gray was sending families, children, adults, and the elderly towards Rin and through the portal. The suffocating feeling from Deliora's aura was beginning to press on the teens which urged them to work even faster. The sound of Gray's guild mates filled the chaotic streets and more people began to go through the portal.

As the sky began to darken with purple clouds and thunder clapped across the ominous sky, all the villagers had been evacuated into True Cross Academy. The only people left in Magnolia Town were the members of Fairy Tail and Rin. Gray's friends were all in defensive stances ready to summon their magic when Gray stepped forward. The guild mates looked at him with confusion and Gray felt the need to look away from them. However he forced to look at them unwaveringly and he swallowed back his ever present fear.

"Gray, what's wrong?" The armoured, courageous, and more than slightly terrifying, Erza Scarlet demanded; sword poised for attack.

"Listen, I need you all to go into the portal."

"WHAT?!" The guild roared in disbelief.

"You're nuts if you think we're going to leave you here all alone." The blonde haired celestial mage, Lucy Heartfilia placed her hands on her hips.

"Yeah, we're a family Gray, we can't just leave you." Macao stated.

"Aye!" Happy agreed.

The other members voiced their agreements causing Gray to clench his fists at his sides tightly. He could feel tears gathering in his eyes as he felt Deliora's presence slowly growing stronger. He was not going to let that nightmare come true, even if it killed his relationship with the guild in the process. He opened his mouth to argue when Rin stepped forward, prompting the guild to finally take notice of him. All the voices suddenly stopped when they saw Rin standing side by side with Gray.

"Why? How?" Mirajane choked out.

"That's not important right now," Gray found his confidence again, "This is Rin and he's going to stay here and help me."

"You just met him," Natsu whispered, "Why do you trust him over us?"

"It has nothing to do with that Natsu." Gray massaged his temples stressfully.

"Then why are you making us leave, we can help you." Erza argued.

"'CAUSE I DON'T WANT EVERYONE I LOVE TO DIE BEFORE MY EYES!" Gray shouted, "PLEASE LET ME PROTECT YOU FROM HIM!"

"Gray, Ur had difficulty with Deliora, she had to resort to Iced Shell, you're going to need all the help you can get." Lucy said sadly.

"It's not just Deliora!" Gray froze when the ground shook once again, "It's also about my father!"

"Your father?" The guild said in unison.

"Yes," Rin answered, "Our father."

"YOU'RE RELATED?!"

"I'll explain it later, but please," Gray pleaded, "Go into the portal."

The guild members looked at each other solemnly. They wanted to help Gray in any way they possibly could, but they also knew that if anything happened to either of them, he would no doubt lose his mind and end up dying himself. Makarov stepped forward, a sad smile planted on his face. All the fairies watched him expectantly, waiting for his orders. The small master of Fairy Tail turned from his children and looked at Gray.

"Gray, we'll do as you wish." He announced, "However, I'm not going to leave you entirely defenseless."

Gray felt his heart stop as soon as the words left the master's mouth. He knew very well what he was going to say and he was going to have none of it. The temperature drastically dropped to below freezing causing the guild to instantly huddle together to conserve body heat; many of the people clung to Natsu since he was better than a heater. Gray stood with his hands clenched at his sides as a blizzard began to tear through the town. Rin watched him wearily and stepped back from ice wielding teen in surprise. Now he knew he could not use kurikara; if he were to unleash Gray's demonic powers, it would just end up killing him.

"No." Gray grumbled sternly, "I want EVERY one of you out of Magnolia; that includes my team."

"Gray…"Makarov's words were cut off when Deliora's roar cut through the town.

If possible, Rin's hands gripped even tighter on the kurikara,

"He's here."

Gray immediately brought his hands together in his recognizable stance. Rin could feel the ice cold magic swirling around his body and he subconsciously moved his body further away from the cold. He may have been born in December, but he wasn't that big of a fan of the cold.

"Ice Make," Gray's voice rang out clearly, "FORTRESS!"

Rin watched in awe as several ice walls sprouted out of the dust covered ground securing the village.

"This should delay him for a little bit, but not long." Gray wiped the sweat mingling on his brow, "Everyone, get going."

"But…"

"GODDAMNIT!" Gray roared, "Get your asses through that portal before I turn you all into fairy-cicles!"

With mirrored expressions of hurt and hesitance, the Fairy Tail members began to head towards the portal. Gray's entire body was shaking with remorse, but he couldn't let that distract him now. He heard the members murmuring words of encouragement to both Rin and himself; a few of the members even said that if he died they would kill him. Not because he failed, but because he recklessly threw his life away to protect his family; what would they say if they knew who he really was? Would they love him even then?

He could feel the ice surrounding the village melting slightly as Deliora's power had overridden his own. He sighed with relief when he saw Rin return from the alleyway, swiftly returning the key to his pocket. The midnight haired teen stood beside the ice mage tensely; waiting for the inevitable to happen.

"Are you ready?" He asked.

Rin smiled slightly,

"As ready as I'll ever be; just promise you won't hate me."

Gray raised his dark brow in confusion as his ice make fortress crumbled to the ground. Deliora's menacing, earth shattering roar once again engulfed the now vacant village. The two half-demons stood frozen in place as the demon stepped into their eyesight. The monster was just as Gray had remembered; it was almost like he had stepped out of one of his nightmares. The demon stood at just over seventeen feet tall and his blue skin swallowed the purple skies that embraced the town. The demon glared down at the teens and laughed deeply at the sight of them. The sound made Gray's skin crawl relentlessly.

"Gray Fullbuster," The voice rumbled, "It's nice to see you again; you sure have grown since the last time I saw you. Not only that, but I see you managed to befriend young Rin Okumura, your father would be pleased."

Gray's pale and clammy hands clenched at his sides,

"Shut the hell up; you think I give a rat's ass what he thinks?"

Deliora opened his mouth and a green jet of pure magic shot out, nearly hitting the teens. The demon glared straight at Gray with loathing onyx eyes,

"Watch your tongue boy; you're talking about the King of all Demons."

"The King of all Demons huh," An all too familiar voice called out from behind them, "Sounds like a load of shit to me."

Gray whirled around and his mouth dropped open without him noticing. Standing in the shadow of the alleyway were three people he did not expect, nor want to see. Natsu Dragneel, Erza Scarlet and Lucy Heartfilia stood in a line behind him with their magic at the ready.

_Just promise you won't hate me…_

He turned to look at Rin his hands shaking with the anger that consumed his body. Rin smiled at him apologetically and then turned to face Deliora once again. Gray faced Deliora keeping his head down so that his deep blue eyes were concealed from the others. He could distinctly hear the sounds of his closest friends' footsteps as they walked up to him and stood by his side. Natsu's hands were shrouded in flames, Erza was adorned in her 'Knight' armour with her sword at the ready, her bright scarlet hair flapping in the wind and Lucy had her keys firmly in her hand as well as summoned Loke or in this case Leo to stand by their side. He felt his own magic circulating around his hands and he also felt the presence of another power deep within him waiting to break free. Rin was standing on his other side, his hands once again clasped firmly on his sword.

Deliora laughed at the scene in front of him and opened his mouth once again to fire his magic. With his head still kept down, he brought his hands together to summon his ice make magic.

"Natsu, Erza, Lucy, Rin," He muttered as the ice gathered in his palms, "Let's do this."

BEFTBEFTBEFTBEFT

Gray hoped that he would never have to see the town of Magnolia, his home, in the state that it was at this moment. Houses, shops, even the reconstructed guild hall had been reduced to piles of burning debris and carnage. Parts of the ground had been torn open from the colliding attacks of Deliora and Natsu and Erza. What hurt him the most was the broken ground was littered with the bodies of his friends. Lucy, Erza, Rin and even Natsu had been thrown around like rag dolls by the very being he thought he was free from. Gray didn't even know how much longer he would be able to protect them; his magic was running low and he wasn't even sure if he could stay on his feet. Deliora on the other hand looked completely unscathed despite all the attacks that had been shot at him. This was Gray's worst nightmare come true. Deliora's earth shaking laugh surrounded the blood soaked air regressing Gray into nothing more than a terrified little boy; he felt like he did all those years ago when Deliora killed his family and friends; before he knew he had magic.

"I thought the sons of Satan were much stronger than this," Deliora cackled, "You've disappointed me young Gray Fullbuster."

The demon shot another blast of magic towards Gray's fallen comrades. Gray hastily drew his palms together and gathered his magic as quickly as possible,

"Ice make: Wall!"

A wall shot up in front of his friends just as Deliora's attack was about to strike. The wall shattered upon impact sending Gray to his knees in exhaustion. His chest heaved as he tried to gather air into his lungs; he knew that if he were to use any more magic, he wouldn't be able to use it ever again. The demon laughed again when Gray shakily raised himself to his feet,

"You may as well surrender; you'll never defeat me, not if you don't have the ability to use the fire that was so graciously given to you at birth."

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"Oh, you don't know?" Deliora smirked, "That's just amusing."

Without hesitation Gray crossed his arms in front of him, one arm over the other. Deliora's smirk immediately disappeared off his face,

"You wouldn't even dare; without you, Assaiah would perish."

"Try me!" Gray growled as a cold harsh wind started to whip around his body, "I'm not powerless anymore! I won't let you destroy everything I have or everything I love!"

Deliora actually took a step back which caused a smirk to spread over his lips,

"Ice make: Iced…"

"DON'T EVEN THINK ABOUT IT GRAY FULLBUSTER!"

Gray turned his head and wasn't surprised to see the pink haired dragon slayer back on his feet. Natsu was staggering towards him, pure rage danced across his exhausted face. Natsu always seemed to know when he was going to do something idiotic; which for once didn't bug him in the slightest. He smiled and uncrossed his arms without thought. The cold air dissipated and Natsu raised his eyebrow slightly as he took in the smile on Gray's face.

"Don't worry flamehead; I was just wasting a little time so you could get your sorry ass up." Gray teased despite the predicament he was in.

Natsu shook his head in disbelief as a knowing smile spread across his lips,

"You dumbass pervert, don't try shit like that."

Gray shrugged nonchalantly,

"How are the others?"

"I'm pretty sure Erza is going to be up and spewing fire soon enough and I'm pretty sure that Rin dude was moving when I got up," Natsu clenched his jaw, "But Lucy is exhausted, I don't think she'll be able to help us much."

"What about you?" Gray questioned, "Do you still have magic left?"

"Yup, I'm all fired up. How 'bout you ice block?"

"I have enough for this." He answered simply.

Natsu nodded in understanding,

"You ready to waste more time?"

"Hell yeah."

Gray watched as Natsu channeled his flames into the soles of his feet and shot towards Deliora. Deliora who was still dumbfounded over what had just taken place was frozen until the dragon slayer smacked him in the jaw with a flaming fist. The raw power of the punch was actually able to push the oversized demon back. Natsu continued to attack relentlessly as Rin slowly made his way over to Gray and stood beside him exhaustedly. By looking at him even with just a side glance, Rin could see that Gray was just as exhausted as they all were. Cuts, bruises and chunks of ice lined his chest, abdomen, arms and legs; Rin didn't want to know what he looked like if Gray looked like he went to hell and back a million times.

"Rin," Gray whispered, his eyes never leaving Natsu's form, "You can use flames too can't you?"

"Uh," Rin's eyes widened at the unexpected question, "What makes you ask that?"

"Just answer the damn question, Natsu won't last much longer without our help and my ice magic is almost out."

Rin sighed and pushed his blood matted bangs out of his eyes,

"Yes I can, but I can't use them here."

"Why?" The ice mage demanded angrily.

"My flames are sealed in this kurikara, when I unsheathe it, my demonic power is awakened which allows me to manipulate the blue flames of our father." Rin explained hastily, "But, if I unsheathe the kurikara here, with you in the vicinity, it could awaken your demonic powers too."

Gray stared at Rin silently putting together the words that he said as well as the words that he hadn't said. If his demonic powers awakened, the blue flames would no doubt end up killing Gray in the process. Natsu's anguished scream tore through Gray's mind causing his attention to snap back to the battle. Natsu was on the ground, his leg twisted at an odd angle. Deliora was roaring triumphantly as he advanced on the fallen dragon slayer. Gray looked behind him and saw that Erza was still down for the count. Gray bowed his head so that his bangs shadowed his face, a small tear trailed down his cheek when he came to his decision.

"Do it."

"What?" Rin asked in confusion.

"Unleash your demonic power." Gray whispered, "You're the only one other than Erza who stands a slight chance at defeating Deliora."

"But, what about you?"

"Just let me get Natsu out of the way and then you can do it."

"Gray…"

"Dammit Rin, just do as I say!" Gray shouted, "Have faith that I'll be able to survive this."

"Okay."

Gray smiled at the half-demon thankfully before he ran full speed towards the dragon slayer. Glad to feel that some of his magic had slightly replenished he brought his palms together once more. He dived at Natsu and landed in front of him protectively. Deliora smiled darkly at his appearance and prepared to fire another magical beam. He felt his magic encircle his hands and he stared down the demon,

"Ice make: Lance!"

Several arrow-like pillars of ice shot towards Deliora momentarily distracting him from firing his attack. Gray turned his back on the demon quickly and picked Natsu off the ground bridal style. Natsu cried out in pain since the movement slightly jarred his broken leg. He started to run away from the demon with the dragon slayer pulled firmly against his chest.

"Gray, what are you doing?" Natsu glanced up at him with pain filled eyes.

"Getting you away from Deliora so Rin can handle him."

"But…"

Gray leaned Natsu against the wall of a partially demolished building and laid his legs out gently. Natsu grimaced when his broken leg was laid out in front of him; it wasn't right to see your bone outside of your skin. Gray gently placed his hands over Natsu's leg,

"I'm not much of a healer, but this should help a little."

Natsu nodded and he instantly felt a comforting chill over his leg. When Gray removed his hands, he saw that a coating of ice had spread its way across the broken bone allowing Natsu to bear the pain.

"Thanks."

Before Gray could answer, Deliora's roar echoed around him. He turned to look at the demon and he noticed that Deliora was staring murderously in his direction,

"Gray Fullbuster, how dare you snatch away my revenge! That dragon slayer deserves to die for what he did to me!"

Gray ignored his words and watched as Rin charged at the blue demon. Looking closely, he could see that the sheath was still on the sword. He swore and yelled,

"Rin forget about me for a moment and do it!"

Their eyes connected briefly, sapphire on deep blue. Rin nodded his head in conflicted understanding. While still running, he turned his sword horizontally and gripped one hand on the hilt and the other on the sheath. With a moment's hesitation, Rin tore the sheath off the blade and through it aside. Before the sheath could even touch the ground Rin erupted into a sea of blue flames. His pointed ears elongated and his canines became sharper; he looked like a true demon. As the flaming blade touched Deliora's skin, Deliora erupted into screams of rage and pain. That beautiful sound was one of the last things Gray heard before his own body succumbed to an inconceivable agony. Gray collapsed to the ground as blue flames danced across his pale skin, his ice magic trying to valiantly fight against the unwelcome heat that now resided in his body; it felt like he was going to be torn to pieces. He could hear Natsu calling his name in the distance, but he couldn't control his body anymore; he couldn't feel it. Natsu's face was hanging over his and tears of confusion and pain fell down his cheeks as he begged Gray to hold on, but in all honesty, Gray didn't know how long that would be.

BEFTBEFTBEFTBEFT

"GRAY!"

Rin fought back his wince as Natsu's distressed voice carried over to him. Every part of him wanted to sheath the kurikara right then and there to stop Gray's pain, but he knew that the ice mage would tear him to shreds for it. The half-demon forced himself to stop listening to the fire mage's cries even if it was nearly impossible to do so. He slashed the emblazed kurikara across Deliora's blue skin once again eliciting another scream of pain from the monster.

"Damn you Rin Okumura!" The demon howled, "You'll pay for turning your back on your race!"

"Shut the fuck up you overgrown piece of shit!"

Rin went to attack the beast again, but Deliora whipped out his massive arm and struck Rin in the chest. All the air in his lungs was knocked out of him as an intense pain spread across his torso; he hit the ground with a sickening thud. He struggled to get back to his feet and the pain from the strike with Deliora and the ground had made his vision hazy. He spit the blood out of his mouth and shook his head back and forth in an attempt to clear his head.

"Rin!"

He turned his head to see the scarlet haired woman, he believed Gray called her Erza, running towards him with twin swords in her hands, red pants with flames dancing along them and her hair pulled back. She kind of looked like a samurai from those movies that he and the gang watch nearly every weekend. Her eyes were dark and determined; she seemed like she was out for blood, whether or not it was for his blood, he wasn't sure. She stopped running when she was right by his side. He noticed that she was watching his blue flames warily from the corner of her eye.

"Have you always been able to do that?" She inquired darkly.

"Yes, but due to external circumstances I was unable to call upon them." He remarked coolly. 'And Yukio thought I couldn't keep calm.'

Erza's gaze shifted to an emotional Natsu, an exhausted and worried Lucy, and a torched Gray who was writhing in agony.

"Did you do that to him?" Erza indicated the blue flames surrounding both Rin and Gray.

"Not intentionally," Rin ran at Deliora and attacked him again, "I didn't want to do it, he insisted upon it. He truly believes that it's the only way we would beat this jackass."

Erza nodded in sad comprehension,

"Yeah, that sounds like him. If it's not casting Iced Shell, it's awakening the demonic powers that counteract the core of magic that lies within him… the stupid, stubborn idiot."

She followed Rin's lead and attacked Deliora causing the demon to howl in pain once again. Droplets of purple blood started to flow from the demon, decorating the broken street in an array of grotesque art. By watching the now revealed half-brother of her closest friend, she could see how much the two of them were similar; not only by physical appearances, but fighting styles as well. Like Gray, Rin's emotions were always clear on his face; the only time someone could see the emotions of these two boys was when they were fighting to protect the people they care about. The demon let loose another bone shattering roar that created immensely powerful shockwaves that sent both the swordsmen to the ground. They both tried to get to their feet, but they found that their exhausted bodies were no longer responding to them. Deliora laughed triumphantly as he watched them as they struggled to stay conscious.

"No matter what you do, or what powers you may possess, you will never kill me!" He gloated, "There is no one from this world or the next that can defeat me!"

"I… disagree…" A voice panted exhaustedly.

BEFTBEFTBEFT

Natsu was falling to pieces right there. One moment his best friend, his rival, was perfectly fine, the next thing he knew the ice mage was on fire. The fire wasn't normal to Natsu, not only was it blue, but he knew that he would not be able to eat it. The flames carried a dark menacing power that threatened to consume Natsu if he tried to even go near it. This had to be the first time that he was actually afraid of fire. He could hear Rin fighting Deliora and he felt powerless just sitting there. Thanks to Gray's handiwork, he could've gone to go help the half-demon, but he couldn't make himself leave the ice mage's side. The pink haired dragon slayer ran his hand through his spiky hair in frustration, his heart breaking every time he heard Gray's agonized cries. Natsu hesitantly held out his hand and reached for the midnight dark haired boy's hand. When the tips of his fingers brushed against Gray's he suddenly felt safe. At that moment, the blue flames surrounding his friend didn't seem dangerous; the flames wanted Natsu to help them in any way he possibly could. The dragon slayer gripped the ice mage's hand tightly and he could feel the blue flames silently mingling with his red ones. Even though the blue flames scared Natsu, they were trying to tell him their true intentions. He wasn't exactly sure, but it was like the blue flames didn't want to harm Gray; the essence of the blue flames was trembling in fear at the prospect of killing its host. Natsu was so entranced by the feelings circulating around his head that he didn't catch the sound of staggered footsteps coming towards him.

"N-Natsu," Her voice quivered, "I-Is he going to be okay?"

He glanced at the source of the voice and a reassuring smile formed across his grime covered face,

"Yeah, I think he's going to be just fine Lucy."

The blonde celestial mage collapsed to her knees, from both physical and emotional exhaustion. Her large brown eyes were brimming with tears and her hands were clasped tightly in her lap. The sound of the battle roared around them causing Lucy to flinch guiltily.

"I'm so scared," She whispered, "How do you know he's going to be okay?"

Natsu pulled Lucy closer to him and wrapped a firm arm around her waist; his other hand was still gripping Gray's tightly. He watched the strained rise and fall of his best friend's chest, the Fairy Tail emblem standing out drastically on his pale and inflamed skin. He turned to Lucy and stared straight into her saddened orbs,

"Because this is Gray we're taking about and he'd be damned if he were to even think about giving up. He has too much to live for; he just found out that he has family other than us. He discovered that he has two younger brothers now and he's going to want to get to know them. He also has to make S-Class and make sure this Deliora bastard is put down for good. People need this pervy icicle and he damn well knows it too; plus, he still hasn't beaten me yet."

The celestial mage couldn't help but stare at the dragon slayer blankly for a couple moments. Then unexpectedly, she started to laugh. She could be going crazy because of the trauma, but at that moment, Natsu was able to instill more hope in her.

"You're right," She wiped the tears from her eyes, "I thought those words would never come out of my mouth."

"Hey!" Natsu half smiled, "I do have my moments."

"Yeah, and they always seem to come at the worst times." A raspy voice put in.

Both the dragon slayer and the celestial mage watched in complete shock as the fallen ice mage slowly pushed himself into the sitting position. The blue flames still danced across his skin, but the heat didn't seem to be as intense as before. Gray was the exact same, but different. Natsu noted that Gray's ears had taken on a pointed look and had elongated. His canine teeth had also sharpened and Natsu was 99.9% sure that Gray now had a tail. However, that fire of determination was still in his eyes and despite all the differences, the dragon slayer was happy that Gray still had his tenacity.

"Gray!" Lucy exclaimed, "You're awake!"

The newly awakened half-demon pushed himself shakily to his feet and started to make his way to Deliora once more. He had to stop when a hand wrapped itself tightly around his wrist. Gray sighed because he knew exactly who it was going to be,

"Natsu, let go of me."

"You were burning to death a few minutes ago," The pink haired boy ignored him, "Are you sure?"

"I'm more than sure," Gray yanked his hand out of Natsu's grip, "Rin needs me, Erza needs me, you and Lucy need me, Fiore needs me and Assaiah needs me; let me do this."

Natsu put his hands on Gray's shoulders and pulled him into a hug. Gray stiffened, but gradually relaxed as he wrapped his arms around the dragon slayer,

"Be safe."

Gray nodded, tears prickling at the corner of his eyes,

"I will, don't worry."

The pink haired teen relinquished his grasp and stood beside Lucy. The blonde looked like she was going to burst into tears all over again, but she kept her distance. She knew Natsu could hug Gray because he was a fire mage, but she wasn't sure if she could. Gray walked up to her and pulled her into his arms. Despite the flames, Gray still felt like Gray; several degrees below normal temperature.

"How?" She gasped.

"I'm going to make what was impossible, possible." He whispered in her ear.

Before she could say anything, he turned towards the fallen warriors. Despite his aggravated muscles, he ran to his friends, ready to do everything in his power to save them. He watched in fear as Rin and Erza were blown backwards from a shockwave; they couldn't get back to their feet. Deliora laughed once again sending chills down Gray's spine,

"No matter what you do, or what powers you may possess, you will never kill me!" He gloated, "There is no one from this world or the next that can defeat me!"

"I…disagree." He panted as he came to a stop in front of Erza and Rin, shielding them from Deliora's view.

The smirk that spread across Deliora's lips immediately disappeared when he saw Gray's new appearance,

"I see that you have survived the transformation."

A cold wind blew around the two demons as an ominous silence engulfed the town. Erza's eyes narrowed as she recognized the cold that surrounded them; it was Gray's ice magic. What confused her was how his ice magic was still there even though his demonic powers had awakened. The sound of running footsteps appeared behind Rin and herself prompting her to turn around. Natsu and Lucy were standing behind them, starting to help them to their feet. Erza and Rin leaned on the two mages so they could stay balanced.

"Some shit is going to go down." Natsu whispered with a smile on his face.

"You sense it too?" Erza whispered in disbelief.

"His fire is different," Rin said thoughtfully, "He still has his ice magic."

BEFTBEFTBEFT

Gray watched the demon standing before him warily. He took notice of the various wounds and cracks that laced Deliora's frame and a small smirk formed against his lips. He could feel Rin and Natsu's hungry flames roaring behind him, he could feel the life in the trees and the fighting spirit of the world around him. He brought his palms together, his ice magic and blue flames working together to replenish the energy that they give off.

"Deliora," Gray's deep blue eyes glowed, "You're going back to hell."

The blue demon stepped backwards to put as much distance between him and the mutated mage as much as possible. Gray smiled at the fear that was evident in the demon's obsidian eyes,

"Ice Make: Demon Flames Ice Cannon!"

A shockwave of power exploded when Gray's ice cannon appeared. The ice cannon looked relatively normal, but when it fired, it fired compressions of the blue flames that were surrounding him combined with the blast of ice that erupted from the nozzle. The magic struck Deliora straight in the chest throwing him off his feet. Deliora's body slid across the broken ground and rammed into a nearby building. The demon howled in pain as the hole in his chest throbbed and oozed purple blood.

"How dare you!"

Gray rolled his eyes and crossed his arms over his bare chest,

"Seriously? You're going to try and pull that 'I'm all high and mighty' shit; you must be desperate."

The demon pushed himself to his feet and made his way back to the arrogant half-demon. His gaze slightly shifted towards the mages and half-demon standing behind the ice mage and supressed the smile that was going to spread across his face. He gathered the remainder of his energy and fired. A green beam, brighter and more powerful than the others, shot towards the weakened people behind the demonic ice mage.

"Shit!" Gray screamed and jumped into the line of fire, "Ice Make: Demon Fire Ice Geyser!"

Both attacks met head on causing a shockwave of immense pressure to spread through the deserted, crumbled streets of Magnolia. Natsu, Lucy, Erza and Rin were pushed backwards as the strong powers continued to clash. Deliora's power was beginning to push Gray back as well, and the ice mage struggled to stay on his feet. As if in a trance, Rin broke out of Natsu's grip and walked towards Gray. Natsu reached out his arm in order to stop him, but Erza shook her head and held onto his arm. The three mages watched as the half-demon approached their friend and prayed that he would be able to do something to help.

Rin placed his hand on Gray's shoulder and the flames became stronger instantly. Gray glanced at him and smiled at him thankfully. Rin closed his eyes and channeled his fire into Gray making the Demon Fire Ice Geyser ten times more powerful than it already was. Deliora was pushed back and he dropped to his knees. The green beam dispersed the enflamed ice geyser struck Deliora in the chest once more. The mages and half-demon's closed their eyes as a bright blue light blanketed their vision. When they opened them again, the demon Deliora was beginning to disintegrate before their eyes.

"Even if you defeated me Gray Fullbuster, you'll never defeat Satan."

Gray laughed and draped his arm over Rin's shoulder,

"With the help of one son of Satan I was able to blow you to smithereens! Imagine what would happen if all three of us combine our powers."

"You're going to go to hell Gray Fullbuster, one way or another you will go there."

"You know," Gray messaged his temple, "I liked you a lot better when all you could do was roar."

Before Deliora could say anything, the blue demon dispersed into the wind without a trace. If it weren't for the collapsed building and broken roads, it would be like he wasn't there at all. Gray and Rin sighed simultaneously in relief. Rin moved out of Gray's grip and exhaustedly walked over to his discarded sheath. He slowly sheathed the kurikara and the flames surrounding both Gray and himself died. Both half-demons collapsed onto the ground and stared up at the now blue sky.

"Hey Gray, Rin?" Natsu called, "Are you guys alright?"

"Yeah," Gray called, "We're good! I'm just going to sleep for a few weeks."

"I need a vacation," Rin mumbled, "Yukio owes me big time."

"Yukio?" Gray asked, "Is that your brother?"

Rin smiled,

"Yeah. The damn four eyes said this job would be difficult by myself, but he said nothing about an oversized, magic wielding piece of shit."

Gray chuckled,

"Welcome to Fiore; the land of oversized, magic wielding pieces of shit."

"Seriously?"

"Pretty much," Gray smiled, "You should see some of the bastards Natsu sets aflame."

"Nah, Assaiah is temperamental enough for me."

"Speaking of Assaiah, we should probably go and bring the villagers back home." Gray sat up, "Plus my guild mates will want to know if we survived."

"Yeah."

Rin got to his feet and held out his hand to Gray to help him up. Gray warily accepted his hand and allowed Rin to pull him to his feet. When he stood he was immediately swarmed by Natsu, Erza and Lucy who pulled him into a tight hug. He was so happy that his friends survived Deliora; he was happy that he was able to see them smile once more. Suddenly a chill travelled up his spine as a sharp, uncomfortable feeling caused him to jump. He turned to see that Natsu had his tail in his hand with a goofy smile on his face,

"I thought you had a tail!"

"Let go of it you flame bastard!" Gray roared as he yanked it out of the fire mage's grip, "Damnit Rin how do you deal with this?"

Rin laughed exhaustedly,

"No one in Assaiah has thought of playing with my tail, plus it helps to keep it tucked in my pants."

"Yeah that's not going to work for me." Gray mumbled.

"Why?"

Lucy laughed,

"I don't know if you noticed, but Gray has a habit of stripping."

Rin looked thoughtful and then he banged his fist on the palm of his hand in understanding,

"That's where your shirt went earlier."

Gray's cheeks flushed red and he moved his gaze to the floor,

"Yeah, most likely…"

The three mages and Rin laughed good naturedly at the demon ice mage as they headed towards the alleyway. When Rin opened the portal the mages entered so they could start searching for the villagers and their guild mates. Gray stood hesitantly next to the portal and looked at Rin nervously. Rin smiled reassuringly and placed his hand on his half-brother's shoulder,

"Are you ready?"

Gray sighed and smirked,

"As ready as I'll ever be."

TBC


End file.
